It is unclear whether ulcerative colitis (UC) is a progressive disease similar to Crohn's disease (CD). Patients with UC often are undertreated because of the possibility of curative colectomy and the perception that the disease burden is lower than that of CD. We discuss findings from studies that aimed to determine whether UC and CD have the same disease burden and should be treated in the same intensive way. We discuss the similarities between CD and UC, including effects on quality of life, long-term complications, strictures, increased risk of cancer, pseudopolyps, functional abnormalities, and anorectal dysfunction. Contrary to the generally accepted idea, surgery cannot cure UC. Postoperative complications, especially pouchitis and fecal incontinence, affect more than one third of patients. CD and UC each pose substantial economic burdens. Monitoring, treatments, and goals of therapy are similar for all inflammatory bowel diseases. Earlier initiation of disease-modifying drugs might reduce the progression of UC and reduce its burden after surgery, although UC might not cause the irreversible damage observed in patients with CD.

中文翻译：

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溃疡性结肠炎和克罗恩氏病有相似的负担和治疗目标。

尚不清楚溃疡性结肠炎（UC）是否是类似于克罗恩病（CD）的进行性疾病。由于可以进行结肠根治性切除术，并且认为疾病负担低于CD负担，因此UC患者经常得不到充分的治疗。我们讨论了旨在确定UC和CD是否具有相同疾病负担并应以相同的强化方式治疗的研究结果。我们讨论了CD和UC之间的相似之处，包括对生活质量，长期并发症，狭窄，癌症风险增加，假性息肉，功能异常和肛门直肠功能障碍的影响。与普遍接受的想法相反，手术不能治愈UC。术后并发症，特别是囊炎和大便失禁，影响了三分之一以上的患者。CD和UC各自构成了巨大的经济负担。所有炎症性肠病的监测，治疗和治疗目标均相似。尽管UC可能不会引起CD患者不可逆转的损害，但尽早开始使用改变疾病的药物可能会降低UC的进展并减轻其手术后的负担。